Dragoneye
by Radiant Emblem
Summary: Stefan accepts Queen Elincia's offer to join the Crimean Army, but a mysterious enemy appears in the form of a creature long thought to be extinct: the last Feral Dragon Laguz. Where did it come from and what does it want? Abandoned at the moment. May be rewritten later.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

Cold. Endless, frosty, bitter cold.

The Swordmaster adjusted his position on the the saddle of the black-scaled Wyvern, gripping the creature's spiny back ridge with hands that were completely numb from the hour-long flight over the countryside. The crisp breeze ruffled his long green hair, causing it to appear even more messy than it usually was. His coat was wrapped tightly around his body in an attempt to ignore the chill wind that threatened to throw him off the Wyvern's back. One thing he had learned from this was that flying on a Wyvern in cold weather was _not _a sensible idea. Strangely enough, the cold didn't seem to have any effect on the creature's owner. He could only assume that Haar had been out in this weather so often that he no longer noticed how low the temperature was.

It was, Stefan bitterly thought, very unfortunate that he lived in a desert. He was already missing the warmth of the sun at his back and the feel of the hot sand under his feet. The burning heat of the desert was so different from this place, he was starting to wonder if it was actually _possible_ for the temperature to drop this low.

Obviously it was.

The black-armoured Wyvern Rider turned his head slightly to the left so he could glance over his shoulder at his travelling companion, a movement which also allowed him to see properly out of his one remaining eye. 'Not used to this?' he asked, with the slow, dull voice of somebody who is finding it hard to stay awake.

'The temperatures in the Grann Desert are... quite different from this,' Stefan admitted. He was now wishing he hadn't agreed to go back to Crimea as one of Queen Elincia's soldiers; in fact, he was wondering how he could have been mad enough to agree in the first place. Although Elincia would certainly appreciate having someone as skilled as him in the Crimean Army, the prospect of living constantly in this kind of weather was far from appealing and he was actually considering asking the Wyvern Rider to turn around and fly back to the desert right now.

'...The cold doesn't seem so bad after a while,' said Haar after a pause. 'You'll get used to it. Look on the bright side...' He stopped and gave an enormous yawn. 'At least it's not snowing. It's worse when it snows.'

Stefan was unable to comprehend how it could be any worse than this, but he didn't say anything. After all, Crimea wasn't the coldest country on Tellius and it was somewhat refreshing to get away from the desert for a while.

The flight lasted another hour and the landscape remained the same as before; mostly grass with the occasional tree. It was just as featureless as the Grann Desert. Hopefully, Crimea Castle would be a little more interesting. Or so he hoped. He had only seen it once before and that was some years ago, so the castle might have changed quite a bit since then.

It was difficult to tell how much time has passed when he lived in a desert. The landscape never changed, the temperature never changed, and it was hard to remember whether weeks or months had gone by. If it were not for Haar's almost unchanged appearance, he might have believed that several decades had passed since he last laid eyes on Crimea Castle.

Years, or mere days. It was difficult to tell in the desert, where nothing ever happened apart from the occasional sandstorm.

_Well, I do believe things will be more interesting here – even if it's a little too cold for my liking._

Throughout the rest of the journey Haar remained completely silent apart from a yawn every now and then. The slow, steady flapping of the Wyvern's leathery wings was the only sound that could be heard in the frosty morning. Despite his obvious exhaustion – as usual – he never once lost control of the black Wyvern they were sitting on, steering the large beast with the skill and swiftness that was only seen in very experienced Wyvern Riders. He seemed to control the creature while barely twitching the reins, and the Wyvern responded immediately to every command as though they could read each other's minds.

The countryside of Crimea had many interesting landmarks including a snow-topped mountain a few miles south of the castle. The jagged black rock was marked with deep caves and cliffs. Solid ice coated one side of the mountain, dripping with water as it began to melt slowly in the weak winter sunlight.

The magnificent Crimea Castle slowly came into sight as they navigated their way around a mountain. Stefan looked down at the great fortress, still wondering vaguely if he had made the right decision by coming here. It seemed like years ago Elincia had offered to let him join the Crimean Army, and he couldn't entirely remember why he had accepted her offer.

'Down, boy,' said Haar sharply, sounding a little more awake than usual as he flew towards the castle. Had he seen something dangerous? Stefan couldn't help but notice the black Wyvern's agitation as well, as the creature snorted and tossed its head violently, like a horse sensing a predator. Despite the creature's protests, Haar steered it downwards until its feet touched down on the dew-covered grass near the castle's outer gates.

As soon as they landed, Stefan leapt off the Wyvern's back, his feet hitting the ground a little harder than he intended and causing him to stagger slightly. Haar caught his arm before he fell and jumped off the creature's back himself, before glancing upwards at the castle. Stefan followed the other man's gaze and spotted a large black bird the size of a Wyvern perched on the castle roof, watching them with suspicious eyes.

'Naesala,' muttered Haar, ending the word with a deep yawn. 'Wonder what he wants this time?'

'He usually comes here?'

'Sometimes. Apparently, he's acting as Tibarn's messenger, to send letters to the rulers of other countries. Though don't ask me why he'd do that.'

Haar yawned again and leaned back against the Wyvern's side, startling it with his sudden weight. 'Well, you'd better go in,' he said sleepily. 'Elincia doesn't like to be kept waiting. Give me a shout if you need me, but otherwise don't interrupt my nap, I'm exhausted after that flight...'

Stefan had already taken a few steps towards the castle gates when Haar spoke. Glancing back, he realised that the Wyvern Rider seemed to have already fallen asleep, using his steed as a backrest. With a shrug, he wandered over the drawbridge and through the enormous gates. He had stronger hearing than other people, and could already hear the noise within the castle that sounded like the Crimean marketplace on a Sunday morning.

_Maybe if I'm lucky, it won't be so cold tomorrow... _he couldn't help thinking as he entered the fortress, already hearing the hooves of the Royal Knights' horses as they galloped across the courtyard to meet him.


	2. Chapter 2

**_Here's Chapter Two. Thanks to ShiverIntheLight and ancazur for reviewing! :)_**

Chapter Two

As always, the interior of Crimea Castle was ornately decorated, from the thick blue carpet on the floor to the enormous paintings hanging from every wall, so there didn't seem to be an inch of grey stone visible. Several statues adorned the hallways, made of pure gold and encrusted with multi-coloured gemstones. The soft, flickering glow from hundreds of candles lit up the narrow corridors, driving away the darkness that filled the castle after nightfall.

But today was different. The castle looked incredible even by Queen Elincia's standards. It looked as though she had spent every gold coin in the royal treasury on decorations, and the castle servants had probably all been killed by exhaustion from the amount of work they had done. Not a speck of dust was to be seen anywhere, not even on the frames of the old paintings that covered all the walls. Presumably, Elincia had wanted the castle to be tidy when her guests arrived, but this was a bit of an overreaction in Stefan's opinion. Judging by the startled looks on the faces of the Royal Knights walking behind him, this was the first time they had seen the inside of the castle looking so... _tidy._

The Swordmaster glanced back at the group of Royal Knights clunking along behind him in their heavy armour; the noise was slightly distracting. Also, the stiff posture of the blue-haired Commander was all too familiar to him. 'General Geoffrey,' he said simply.

'Sir Stefan,' Geoffrey responded with a quick glance in his direction. 'Is there a problem?'

_Perhaps I should ask him why Elincia wanted the castle so heavily decorated today, _Stefan thought, but quickly dismissed the idea and replied with his usual formality. 'Of course not, General. I was simply... thinking.'

All of a sudden, the Royal Knights stopped dead in their tracks and nearly collided with each other, except for Geoffrey. He dropped to one knee, bowed low and said, 'My Queen! We were just coming to search for you.' Stefan turned slowly to see who Geoffrey was talking to, although he already knew who it must be. Only one person could cause such a strong reaction among the usually-calm Royal Knights.

The emerald-haired Queen Elincia stepped over the threshold of a nearby doorway and came into the room. 'Geoffrey, please stand up,' she said softly. 'There's no need to be formal with me. It is a special occasion today, after all.' As she spoke, she shook out her sleeve to hide the small dagger she kept hidden under it. Even when she wasn't on the battlefield, she obviously liked to have a weapon on her for safety – a precaution Stefan approved of.

Elincia turned to the Swordmaster she had not seen in nearly five years, and a small smile lit up her face. 'Sir Stefan, it's an honour to see you again. So you decided to accept my offer, I take it? You never replied to my letter that I sent last week.'

Stefan nodded slightly. 'I did. I intended to tell you before coming here in person, but unfortunately I had no way of responding to your letter... it's difficult to send letters from the middle of the desert,' he added with a chuckle. 'I wouldn't be here at all if Haar hadn't been passing by at the time.'

'Actually, I asked him to fly over there just in case... I figured that you would require some form of transport to get all the way over here,' said Elincia. She waved a hand lightly, indicating the rest of the room. 'I suppose you saw my decorations.'

'I must say, the castle is rarely this... tidy,' the Swordmaster replied.

'Well, I wanted everything to be perfect; you're not the only visitor coming today and it would be nice if they saw something other than dust and ancient paintings.'

'So, why exactly did you make this offer, Your Majesty? As far as I know, you have a very powerful army already. Besides, there is little need for soldiers in this time of peace, isn't there?'

'Perhaps. But I always like to be prepared. After two wars I've started to believe that my country is simply a magnet for trouble.' She smiled a little sadly. 'With Sir Ike long gone I need to build up my army in case of another attack. This is why I offered you a place as one of my soldiers. I also sent similar offers to a few of the finest warriors around Tellius, but only one of them agreed; luckily he's a very skilled fighter.'

'...And who might he be?' the green-haired Swordmaster asked just as the door behind him creaked open.

Elincia smiled again and waved a white-gloved hand at the green-haired, squinting, perpetually cheerful Paladin coming into the room. 'This is Oscar, the newest member of the Royal Knights and one of my finest soldiers. If we are ever attacked again, you will be fighting alongside him in the army.'

* * *

Haar awoke, an hour after his arrival at the castle, to the sound of shrieking. He leaned against his Wyvern and glanced up at the overcast sky, tilting his head sideways so he could see out of his good eye. The sky was empty and silent again. 'Funny. I'm sure I heard something.'

The black Wyvern growled in its throat and pointed its tail at a particular spot directly above them. Haar followed the beast's gaze and spotted a large, dark shape in the sky, circling slowly without flapping its wings. It was too big to be a bird, but he couldn't think what else it might be. A wild Wyvern, maybe?

'No, that's stupid,' he yawned. 'Haven't seen a wild Wyvern in years, they're probably extinct.' But he continued to stare at the dark shape circling the skies high above him. It moved so smoothly and gracefully that he thought it might be a Hawk Laguz; but no, it was the wrong shape for that. He noticed his own Wyvern watching the creature very intently as though he knew exactly what it was.

Haar yawned and looked back up again, but the creature was gone. It had disappeared into the clouds, leaving nothing behind except a few strands of... '...Smoke?' the Wyvern Rider said aloud. 'Now _that's _worth reporting to Elincia about... Come on, boy, we've got a job to do.'

The black Wyvern gave a surprised yelp as Haar leapt into the saddle and took the reins one-handed. 'Don't worry, boy. We can both have a _long _sleep after this...' Without being asked, the Wyvern spread its dark wings and leapt into the air towards the castle. Somehow – and it could be blamed on Haar's drowsiness – neither of them noticed the long, black scorch mark, a sign of fresh fire, that scarred the side of the castle wall.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Splintered pieces of wood exploded through the air with a massive crash as Stefan's sword literally destroyed the wooden dummy that Elincia's soldiers used for training. In one blow, he had cut it in half and sent its head rolling all the way across the floor until it came to a stop against the wall of the training room, looking rather forlorn. Stefan glanced around at the Royal Knights who were also practising, noting with a slight smirk that they were all out of breath and struggling to lift their heavy weapons after barely scratching the wooden figures they had been attacking for the past half hour. Only General Geoffrey had managed to cause any real damage to his 'opponent'.

The Swordmaster's gaze raked across the large room until he spotted the familiar green-haired, squinting knight. Oscar was obviously one of the more skilled fighters in the Crimean Army. Even though he usually fought on horseback, he seemed to have no problem with fighting on foot like he was doing now. His silver lance swung effortlessly through the air, slicing the head off the training dummy and sending it flying high into the air before smashing into the ground with the dull crack of splintering wood. Oscar smiled faintly with satisfaction and wandered off to retrieve the head before continuing his training with just as much skill and power as before.

_I ought to consider challenging him to battle some day... _Stefan thought, his smirk becoming more pronounced. _He would make a worthy opponent._

He replaced his sword in the elegant red sheath at his side and, with a sigh, decided to call it a day. There was hardly any need for him to be practising anyway; he was already far more experienced than any of the soldiers here... except maybe Oscar. He glanced back at the green-haired knight, who had just destroyed another wooden training dummy with a few quick slashes of his silver lance, sending sharp pieces of wood flying flying in every direction. He flourished his lance in a pleased manner before starting over again.

Stefan turned away and found himself faced with a tall, red-haired Paladin who was obviously a member of the Royal Knights. He smirked, noticing that the Paladin's axe was already in his hand, as though he intended to fight the Swordmaster. 'Kieran, isn't it?' he said, having learned the names of the Royal Knights from Elincia earlier that day.

'Ah! How do you know my name?' the red-haired knight shouted, his grip on his axe handle tightening until he looked like he might break his own fingers. 'I have been watching you! Long have I searched for someone who will be my true rival, who will match my great skill in battle! From now on, that dastardly Oscar is no longer my enemy! I hereby challenge you to a duel, o noble warrior!'

'I believe your skill is not as great as you think, Sir Kieran,' Stefan replied almost lazily, not even bothering to draw his sword.

'You insult my abilities?' the knight cried, causing everyone else in the room to stop what they were doing and stare at him. 'I will show you how a true knight like myself fights!' He hefted his axe and swung it with enormous speed and power, the silver blade humming through the air like an arrow.

The next thing he knew, he was being thrown backwards into the wall and his axe had been knocked out of his hand by a strike so fast he hadn't even seen it coming. There was a metallic crash as Kieran's armour hit the wall, followed by a second crash as his axe spun through the air in an arc and sunk deeply into the floor next to his foot. He stared at it for several seconds before looking up in shock. Then he suddenly leapt to his feet, yanked his weapon out of the floor and shouted, 'I will be back! I will train harder until I have the skill to defeat you, rival!' Then he sheathed his axe and marched stiffly out of the room, banging the door shut behind him.

Stefan sheathed his sword before suddenly realising that everyone in the room was staring at him, even Geoffrey. He could tell they were impressed by the way he had defeated Kieran so easily. He decided it was probably best to leave before anyone starting questioning him on how he had done it. Just as he was reaching for the door handle, he sensed someone standing behind him and stiffened before turning around to see who it was.

It was Oscar. the green-haired knight was watching the Swordmaster through eyes that, at first glance, appeared to be closed completely. He was still holding his lance and was smiling faintly in a curious sort of way. 'We weren't properly introduced earlier,' he said, holding out a hand politely. 'I'm Oscar – but then again, you probably already know that.' Stefan took the knight's outstretched hand somewhat reluctantly and shook it. He wasn't really used to people walking up to him and politely introducing themselves.

'Well met, Oscar,' he said formally.

'Queen Elincia wants us to fight together if there's ever another battle at the castle,' the knight continued. 'Though I'm sure you don't need my help; you took care of Kieran easily enough back there. Not many of us can defeat him like that.'

Stefan chuckled softly. 'I would appreciate having someone watching my back, nevertheless. Battles are safer if you fight in groups, rather than alone. I'm sure the Royal Knights are familiar with that strategy.'

Oscar smiled again and nodded. 'I only joined the Army a few days ago, so I've been practising hard to bring my skill level up to match the other Knights.'

'You have great skill already. I can tell by watching you that you have a powerful style of fighting, but you still have much to learn.'

Oscar tilted his head a little to one side and said, 'Could I practise with you some time? I'm sure I could learn a lot from you.'

Stefan considered the question for several long moments. He had been watching Oscar training and he had to admit that the knight _did _have a lot of skill, but he was far from perfect. And Oscar probably _could _learn faster if Stefan taught him. However, the thought of spending possibly hours at a time in the company of another person was making him uneasy. He glanced up at Oscar's pleading expression and gave a long sigh.

'Very well. Come here at sunrise tomorrow morning and I will do my best to help you improve your battle skills. However, you must learn much of it by yourself if you truly wish to be a better warrior.'

Oscar nodded eagerly. 'I'll be here tomorrow morning, then.'

* * *

Haar's Wyvern flew towards the castle with slow, steady beats of his wings. The wind was beginning to pick up, making it hard for the creature to fly. There was also a strong smell of smoke in the air, for some reason. Haar yawned and patted the Wyvern's neck. 'Just a bit further, you overgrown lizard,' he said lazily. 'You'd better hurry up and get to the castle before this wind blows you out of the sky.'

The creature snorted uneasily and looked over its shoulder to glare at its Rider. 'Don't look at me like that. It's not my fault.' The Wyvern growled and looked up at the sky instead. Suddenly, its entire body stiffened and it stopped flapping its wings for a moment.

'Hey, watch it!' said Haar as they dropped a few feet. The Wyvern growled again as though it was trying to tell him something. The smell of smoke was becoming stronger by the moment, and the wind had also grown more powerful.

Just then, a massive black dragon swooped down on them out of nowhere, its eyes burning with rage and madness as it opened its jaws and released a great torrent of flame at the Wyvern and its Rider. The fire missed by inches as it skimmed past the Wyvern's tail, leaving a cloud of smoke in its wake. Without thinking, Haar drew his short axe and stood in the stirrups to fend off the monster, which was flying down and drawing in a deep breath for another blast of flame.

The black Wyvern let out a terrified screech as the full heat of the dragon's breath struck it, leaving long burns across its right wing. The screech echoed back to Crimea Castle, and Queen Elincia heard it and immediately, instinctively prepared for attack.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Author's Note: This chapter is mostly about Haar, I'll get back to Stefan in the next chapter.**_

_**To ShiverIntheLight – thanks for reviewing again! I spell 'practising' with an S because I'm British :)**_

Chapter Four

'Great... Just when I thought I wouldn't have to do this sort of thing any more.' Haar glanced over his shoulder to see the black dragon pursuing him closely, smoke pouring from its flared nostrils and open jaws. He quickly realised his Wyvern wouldn't be able to outrun the beast, so he started working on a new strategy; unfortunately his opponent wasn't giving him much of a chance to think. A jet of flame erupted just over his head, forcing him to lean over the Wyvern's neck to avoid the blast. The dragon roared distantly behind them and dived forwards for a new attack.

Keeping one hand firmly on the Wyvern's neck, Haar stood in the stirrups and lifted his short axe one-handed. He took careful aim and threw the weapon in the direction of the dragon's enormous head, watching with satisfaction as the beast fell back with a roar, the axe-blade embedded in the thick scales at the back of its neck.

Haar turned to face straight ahead and saw that they were just seconds away from reaching the castle and safety. He urged the black Wyvern on before glancing around again to make sure their opponent wasn't anywhere close. _How could something that big just vanish into thin air? _he thought, scanning the grey cloud above them for a sign of the enormous dragon. Nothing. The sky was as cold, frosty and silent as it usually was on an early winter morning. Even the smell of smoke had disappeared.

The Wyvern gave an anxious-sounding whine and tossed its head like a nervous horse. Haar automatically reassured it with a quick pat on the neck, without taking his eye off the clouds above them. 'Easy, boy. I don't think the ugly beast's coming back.' Even as he spoke, the Wyvern made another anxious noise and as though it knew something was wrong and couldn't do anything about it.

Then the black dragon erupted from the sky, burning a hole through the clouds before plunging down to attack. Its jaws were fully open to show a double row of teeth as long as daggers and its eyes were sparkling with madness. The Wyvern gave a terrified shriek, its wings stilled in the air – and then the dragon was upon them.

Haar grabbed the steel axe he kept strapped to the back of the saddle and raised it in time to act as a shield against the dragon's blast of fire. The handle of the axe grew red-hot from the flames and had never been more thankful that he was wearing fireproof gloves, but he had no time to think about that right now. The dragon reared back, roaring, and Haar realised for the first time just how big it actually was. He would have no chance of defeating the creature alone.

Leaning over his steed's neck, he urged the terrified Wyvern to fly faster than ever towards the castle. The dragon chased after them, but it was too large to fully fit inside the castle courtyard, so it quickly gave up. Haar heard the monster snarling in frustration as it realised it could not pursue its prey any longer, and the noisy flaps of its wings as it circled just below the clouds, waiting for the opportunity to strike again.

* * *

Meanwhile, on the roof of the castle, a certain raven had just transformed into his human form. He was watching the battle in the sky with a mixture of boredom and curiosity, while at the same time grooming his sleek hair back into place. He had flown a long way from Phoenicis to deliver Tibarn's message here, and thought he deserved to rest up here for a while before starting his journey back. The long flight through the wind had left his hair and feathers decidedly less tidy than he would have liked, and he wasted no time in repairing the damage.

He looked up and noticed that the Wyvern Rider – who he couldn't remember the name of – had managed to land in the castle courtyard where the dragon could not reach him. The monster roared down at them in fury before disappearing into the grey clouds with a single flap of its enormous wings.

A minute later, the beast re-emerged from the sky and dived, sending out a jet of flame in an attempt to burn down the castle wall and reach its prey. The attempt was useless; the stone wall reflected the fire back at the dragon. The monster landed on the ground and, with one heavy paw, broke the drawbridge into three separate pieces.

Naesala couldn't help but admire the dragon's persistence.

As he watched, the black Wyvern reappeared and flew up to confront the dragon. Its Rider threw another axe at the beast, which came close to hitting it in the eye. Just as they were turning away, the dragon sent out a blast of flame that caught the Wyvern across its left side, leaving deep burns on its wing.

Naesala saw the Wyvern buck in the air and Haar's attempts to calm it; meanwhile, the dragon was slowly circling around to face them again. There was no way they would survive another blast of fire.

_I can't let an ally be killed in front of me._

Thinking quickly, Naesala shifted into his raven form and leapt off the roof to fly straight towards the dragon. The monster swung its head around and roared. He ignored the sound, even though it was loud enough to make him feel like his eardrums were about to explode. He flapped above the dragon's head too quickly for it to see what he was doing, and shouted a warning, 'Run, you idiot!'

As Haar and his injured Wyvern flapped away into the castle, Naesala resumed his attack on the dragon. He moved in a blur of midnight-blue, his sharp beak piercing the monster's scales in a dozen different places. The furious creature twisted its head around and sent a jet of flame straight at the raven, but Naesala dived out of the way, the scorching flames missing him by the width of a feather. Finally, the dragon roared gave up, flying and disappearing into the grey clouds once more.

Naesala shifted back into his human form and glided lazily back down to the roof, where he settled comfortably.

Meanwhile, back in the castle, Haar and Queen Elincia were having a _very_ serious discussion with the Royal Knights.


	5. Chapter 5

_**Sorry I took longer than usual to update this story – I had writer's block.**_

Chapter Five

The atmosphere of the room made it only too obvious that something bad had happened. Geoffrey looked even more grim than usual. Stefan slowly joined them at the long meeting table, choosing to sit next to Oscar, instead of taking the only other vacant chair next to Kieran. Looking around at the others, he saw that Queen Elincia's mouth was set in a hard line as she whispered something inaudible to Geoffrey beside her, her voice sounding much louder than it should have done in the near silence. Even so, Stefan could not decipher the actual words, and he doubted anyone else could either.

The Swordmaster leaned over the table and concentrated on tracing the patterns in the wood with one finger. The table was obviously old. It was scarred and cracked in many places, and there was a thin scorch mark that ran from the top-left corner to the top-right one. The markings in the wood were fascinating enough to occupy him for several minutes while Elincia continued her whispered conversation with Geoffrey.

Stefan noticed a faint scratching noise coming from the space on his left side. Glancing over, he realised that Oscar was also examining the patterns on the surface of the table, a look of deep concentration on his face. _We have more similarities than I originally thought, _he mused to himself, watching the Paladin's finger tracing a long scar across the tabletop. When nothing else happened, he decided to speak up.

'Oscar.'

The green-haired Paladin's head shot up. Then he relaxed and gave a faint smile as he returned the greeting: 'Stefan.'

'You don't happen to know what the Queen called us in here for?'

Oscar shrugged slightly. 'No, but it must be something serious if she wanted us so urgently. I did hear a commotion of sorts going on outside the castle earlier, but I don't know whether it has anything to do with _this.'_

Stefan watched as Oscar returned to examining the scarred tabletop in front of him. Suddenly, Elincia's voice rang out and everyone looked up at her.

'Royal Knights! I have called you all here this morning because of something unusual I discovered while I was taking a walk around the castle gardens a few minutes ago. I found a long burn mark on the tower wall, caused by a powerful flame of some kind. Do any of you know what might have caused it?'

There was a brief murmur around the table before Geoffrey got to his feet. 'My Queen. It sounds as though the marking on the castle wall was caused by the breath of a Dragon Laguz. They are the only creatures large and powerful enough to cause that extent of fire damage.'

'But why,' Elincia questioned, 'would a Dragon Laguz be attacking Crimea Castle? It doesn't make any sense! We allied ourselves with all the Laguz tribes many years ago. I just don't understand why they would turn on us now.'

To this, Geoffrey had no answer. He simply bowed his head and resumed his seat beside her at the table. Elincia cast a worried glance at the rest of the Royal Knights and said, 'If any of you have _any _idea how this happened, please tell me immediately. We are in a very dangerous situation. If the Laguz tribes have decided to declare war on us –'

Just then, there was a deafening crash as the door burst open, hitting the wall so hard that it rebounded and almost swung shut again. The Royal Knights all stood up and reached for their weapons, but stopped at once when they realised that it was only Haar, one of Elincia's hired Wyvern Riders.

He had obviously been in a fight. His jet-black armour – the Daein armour that he had never bothered to replace – showed signs of fire damage. His hair was darkened with ash and most of his left sleeve was peeled away to show a long burn that extended up his arm and disappeared from view underneath his armour.

Stefan lightly rested a hand on the sheathed hilt of his sword as he inspected his old comrade. _Elincia is right. Something very strange is happening here._

Haar took one step into the room and said breathlessly, 'We're under attack. There's a Feral Dragon flapping around outside.'

Elincia's eyes flashed. 'Royal Knights, to arms immediately!' she cried. 'Sir Stefan, you will accompany Sir Oscar, please. I will join you outside in a moment, but I must speak with Haar further.'

Geoffrey took the lead, and the Royal Knights followed him out of the meeting room, the sound of their footsteps slowly fading away. Stefan followed Oscar's retreating back as the Paladin accompanied his comrades, but paused when he heard voices coming from the room they had just left.

'Go', he said quickly to Oscar, who was still waiting for him. 'I will find you in a moment.'

The Paladin hesitated before nodding and rushing after the other Knights. The Swordmaster turned his attention to the now-closed door that hid the Queen and the Wyvern Rider from his sight. As he moved nearer to the door, he heard their whispered conversation in brief flashes.

'...So it flew away?'

'...Naesala appeared just in time, I think.'

'Ah. So it was him who drove the dragon off.' Elincia's voice sounded thoughtful. She did not speak for a moment.

'And what happened to your Wyvern?'

There was another fairly long pause.

'...He's dead,' came Haar's blunt reply. 'Took too much damage from the fire.'

'Oh... I'm sorry.'

'It's nothing. He was getting old anyway, wouldn't have lasted more than a few months at the most. At least he went in battle, the way he'd have wanted to.' Haar's voice was carefully emotionless while he spoke, but the following silence in the room was awkward.

'Well... I guess I'll be going, then,' said Elincia a few seconds later. 'Take care, Haar. You need not join in this battle; I think you've fought enough for one day – besides, you don't have a steed any more.'

'Understood,' replied Haar, drawing out the end of the single word into a deep yawn. 'I'll stay inside and watch. Or sleep.'

Stefan unsheathed his sword and quietly left the door. It wouldn't be good if Elincia found out he'd been eavesdropping on her discussion with Haar, and the Royal Knights would probably require some help before long.

Before he reached the end of the hallway, a deafening roar shook the castle. The floor trembled as though an earthquake was rolling through the ground. Stefan gripped his sword hilt more firmly as the tremors grew more powerful and said to the empty corridor, 'Do you think to attack us again, dragon?'

Nobody answered, of course, but the roaring outside seemed to increase in volume. The wind from the dragon's wing-beats crashed upon the castle with a sound like the waves rising and falling in the ocean.

_Now is the time to fight._


	6. Chapter 6

_**Thanks for all the reviews!**_

Chapter Six

Stormclouds whirled above Crimea Castle, propelled along at high speeds by the furious gale. It was already beginning to rain; small drops splattered Oscar's horse and armour as he trotted over to stand beside his new comrade. The look on his face made it clear that something was worrying him, which puzzled Stefan, because the green-haired Paladin was not afraid of battle.

Oscar's white horse snorted and stretched its neck out to nibble on a patch of long grass. A slight smile lightened Oscar's grim expression as he reached over to fondly scratch the animal behind its ears. 'Good boy. It'll all be over soon.' It sounded like he was reassuring himself as much as the horse.

The other Royal Knights were assembled around Oscar and Stefan, their horses snorting and glancing around nervously. They knew when a battle was approaching. Geoffrey patted his enormous white steed on the shoulder, whispering something to it that Stefan could not make out.

'Is something bothering you?' the Swordmaster asked softly to his nervous-looking comrade beside him.

Oscar started. 'Oh – no,' he said hastily. 'It's nothing... well, actually, I've never fought a dragon before.' He quickly looked away and stared down at his horse's muscled neck.

Stefan surprised him by wandering over and resting a hand on his armoured shoulder for a brief moment. 'Nor have I, but I know how best to attack them and defend yourself against them,' he said quietly. 'They attack using their breath, but sometimes they will become angry and use their claws or tail as well. You have to be quick on your feet and be prepared for anything.'

Oscar nodded. 'But don't Black Dragons fly? How will we fight it if it stays in the air?'

'Simple. The dragon cannot attack us from so high up. It will fly close to the ground, thus allowing it to reach us more easily, but also allowing us to reach _it.'_

Oscar breathed out in quiet sigh of relief. 'Thanks, Stefan. It's good to know you're fighting alongside me. I think I'd be roasted by the dragon in two seconds flat if you weren't there to watch my back,' he added with a short laugh.

Stefan accepted the thanks with a slight nod before looking down at his long, curved sword, which he was holding loosely in one hand. Oscar was wielding a silver lance with an extremely sharp tip that was capable of piercing dragon scales. Weapons were important, especially when fighting an enemy as large and powerful as a Feral Dragon Laguz.

Suddenly, there was a blast of chill wind from above them and all the Royal Knights looked up in surprise, raising their weapons on instinct.

What they saw shocked even General Geoffrey to speechlessness.

A massive black dragon hung in the air directly above Crimea Castle. Its wings were flapping steadily to keep it aloft, sending blasts of air down at Elincia's soldiers. Its red eyes were gleaming with madness as it watched them, but it did not attack. At least not yet.

'Hold the formation!' shouted Geoffrey over the sound of the howling wind. 'Stay where you are and be ready to defend yourselves at any moment!'

Oscar stared up at the dragon without seeming to hear his Commander's words. He appeared to be shocked into silence by the sheer size of the monster.

Stefan thought, _If it swooped down now it could incinerate us all in a second. The Royal Knights wouldn't survive._

* * *

Elincia rushed to the royal stables as fast as she could after hastily donning her pure-white battle armour. She carried the Crimean sword Amiti in one hand and a simple healing staff in the other. As she ran towards the stables, she softly called her Pegasus' name until the beautiful creature looked up from the water trough and turned his elegant head towards her.

'Oh, Sol,' she cried, throwing her arms around the Pegasus' neck. 'I'm afraid we have to go into battle once again.'

Sol rolled his eyes and allowed the Queen to leap swiftly onto his already-saddled Just then, a black-armoured Wyvern Rider slowly walked into the stables.

'Haar!' said Elincia in surprise. 'Wh-what are you doing here?'

'I want to help in the battle,' said Haar seriously. As if to prove it, he was leaning in an old poleaxe. 'Your soldiers can't hope to defeat a dragon by themselves, so I figured you might need some... aerial assistance.'

'But... you don't have a...'

'Wyvern?' Haar finished her sentence for her. 'No problem. I can borrow one of the army Wyverns you keep in the stables. They'll do for the time being... although it won't be the same.'

Elincia hesitated, but she knew Haar was too stubborn to change his mind, despite his apparent laziness. 'Well, if you want to fight with us, I won't try to stop you. There's... there's a few army Wyverns round the back of the stables. They're very well-trained and... loyal.'

Haar nodded, then yawned suddenly. 'I'm only doing this so I can have a good rest afterwards. It's a little hard to sleep when the world's being burned down around you.' He hefted his poleaxe and wandered off in search of the army Wyverns.

Elincia gave him a single troubled look as he walked away, before gently urging her Pegasus into the sky. 'Come on, Sol,' she whispered. 'Let's go and help the others.' Sol neighed reassuringly, but she could sense the Pegasus' nervous anticipation of the coming battle. Taking a deep breath, she drew her royal Crimean sword and flew over the castle wall to join her soldiers outside.

* * *

Stefan and the Royal Knights gazed up at the shadowy black form of the enormous dragon, trying to decide what to do. The creature had landed on the castle roof and was glaring at them viciously, but it still did not swoop down to incinerate them. Smoke was trailing silently from its flared nostrils.

Just then, Stefan heard the screech of a Wyvern, the flapping of wings and the _swish _of an axe flying through the air.

The dragon's head whipped around, and it bellowed in fury as it recognised its attacker. A quiet gasp rose up from the ranks of the Royal Knights as they, too, realised who it was. Even at a distance, the black-armoured Wyvern Rider was unmistakable – but he was not riding on his old black steed any more. He was standing in the stirrups of a smaller, blue-green Wyvern that looked like it had a very bad temper indeed.

The black dragon swung its head around and sent a blast of fire across the castle gardens, setting half the lawn on fire. Haar easily flew above the jet of flame before throwing another axe, which embedded itself in the side of the dragon's neck.

Geoffrey had the sense to shout, 'Duck!' as the infuriated monster swooped low over their heads, aiming for the Wyvern Rider.

Suddenly, the dragon folded its wings and landed on the castle drawbridge, opened its mouth and roared. The ground trembled from the loudness of its voice. The Royal Knights drew back cautiously, and Stefan found himself again standing beside Oscar, who looked like he was about to throw up from the terror.

'Be careful,' the Swordmaster said to the pale-faced knight. 'Pay attention to its movements and attack whenever you have the chance. It might be a Feral Black Dragon, but it's not invincible.'

He looked up again and realised that Haar had flown within the dragon's reach, and he could not turn his Wyvern away fast enough to avoid the coming attack.

The monster reared up and sent a jet of flame roaring into the sky like a lightning bolt. Oscar closed his eyes briefly in despair, but opened them again a second later. High above their heads, there came an ear-splitting shriek as the fire struck something that was neither the Wyvern nor its Rider.

Stefan realised what had happened before anyone else did, and he ran to the side of the drawbridge just in time to see a soot-blackened, feathered creature fall into the moat with a colossal splash.

_It's... Naesala? Did he... fly in front of the dragon's attack?_

The Swordmaster knelt down by the water's edge and reached down with his left hand. A moment later he pulled up the soaking-wet, ominously still Raven. He gently laid the bird on the drawbridge, noticing the messy feathers and the blackened marks on the Raven's body. He heard a dull clunk of armour as Oscar fell to his knees beside them.

'Is he all right?'

Before Stefan could reply, there was a deafening roar. The Feral Dragon had had enough. A clap of thunder rumbled noisily in the clouded sky as the great creature stalked towards them, intent on finally destroying its prey.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

With an earth-trembling roar, the Feral Dragon dropped from the sky and landed on the drawbridge, its long talons digging into the wood. All the Royal Knights save Geoffrey backed away in fear as the beast loosed yet another powerful, ear-splitting bellow. Stefan managed to scoop up Naesala's motionless body and pull him to safety across the drawbridge, leaving him at the entrance of the castle.

The dragon's clawed foot came crashing down on the bridge, which had already been partially broken by its earlier attack. The Royal Knights' horses leapt backwards in to avoid the dragon's enormous foot as it slammed down just inches from them, shaking the entire drawbridge with its weight.

Suddenly, Oscar galloped out of nowhere and charged the dragon, a determined expression on his face. The tip of his silver lance pierced the dragon's front leg and stuck there, embedded in the tough black scales. When Oscar attempted to pull the lance out, it snapped cleanly in two.

Stefan looked on in concern as the Paladin backed away from the dragon, left weaponless and unable to fight back. The dragon swiped the air with its talons and knocked Oscar off his horse in a single blow.

As the knight struggled to his feet, Stefan made a quick decision. Drawing his curved sword, the Vague Katti, he charged at the dragon with a lightning-fast movement and delivered five strikes in rapid succession. His blade cut through the monster's scales with ease and sent it staggering backwards, howling in frustration.

* * *

Meanwhile, Elincia had just flown down on the back of her Pegasus Sol. She was wielding a powerful healing staff, and her sharp eyes immediately spotted Naesala's' lying motionless on the broken drawbridge. His blue feathers were drenched with filthy water and his black eyes were closed; he had not shifted back into his human form. Biting her lip anxiously, the Queen steered her Pegasus down to land on the bridge, where she could inspect the stricken raven more closely.

The heavy jolt as Sol landed nearly threw her from the saddle. Grabbing her staff, she dismounted shakily and gave Sol a quick pat on the neck to tell him how grateful she was for his help, before hurrying over to kneel at Naesala's side. The blue raven was nearly as big as a Wyvern; however, Wyverns had at least _semi_-fireproof skin, while Naesala certainly did not.

Raising her staff, Elincia closed her eyes and focused on using her magic to heal the injured raven. The end of the staff glowed blue with power and she felt it trembling in her grip, but nothing seemed to happen. When she opened her eyes, she saw the raven lying as still and unresponsive as before. The burns in his wings and body had disappeared, but it seemed to have had no effect on him.

'No! Not you, Naesala...' she whispered, gripping her healing staff hard as though that would make it work better. 'You can't die now! Not after you saved Haar's life, twice... Naesala?'

She reached out to touch the bird's water-soaked wing. There was no response.

_Another life I failed to save... _Elincia thought, closing her eyes in despair. She could never forget the time during the Mad King's War when she had seen the hawk Janaff shot down by an arrow right in front of her. Although she had tried to heal him, her magic was not powerful enough to save the hawk's life. Now, as she stared down at Naesala's still form, she couldn't help remembering that moment again. _How many more times will my magic fail me like this?_

She would have liked to stay there, but the sounds of the Royal Knights battling the Feral Dragon forced her to stand up and turn around. She would _not _stay here when she could be helping her other friends. With a newfound determination, she leapt into her Pegasus' saddle, drew her royal Crimean sword and leapt back into the wind.

* * *

Stefan's sword clashed against the dragon's muzzle yet again, sparks trailing from the blade as it ground against the monster's shiny scales. The Royal Knights now surrounded the dragon and were doing their best to fend it off, but they could not avoid the tail swipes, claws and bursts of fire let off by the enraged beast as it savagely fought them. The broken end of Oscar's lance still protruded from its tree-sized foreleg.

Stefan easily dodged the dragon's tail as it swept across the ground towards him, before running forwards and slashing the dragon cross the nose. As before, his sword simply bounced off the glittering black scales. Only the most powerful attacks would do any damage to the beast.

Kieran joined him, using a sturdy hand axe to drive the black dragon off the bridge. While they were fighting, Stefan drew back and scanned the area in search of Oscar. They were supposed to be working together, but he had lost sight of the green-haired Paladin in the chaos of the battle. Now he had no idea what had happened to Oscar.

_There, _he thought, spotting a flash of emerald armour. Oscar was gently leading his frightened horse across the bridge to rejoin his comrades. Stefan swiftly made his way through the crowd to walk on the other side of the horse, helping Oscar to drag the reluctant animal into the midst of the fighting.

'Thanks!' the knight panted, pulling himself onto the back of the skittish mare and drawing the longbow he kept with him in case of emergencies. 'I'll shoot from a distance, you can get closer and help the others. Good plan?'

Without replying, Stefan joined the battle. The other Royal Knights were fighting as hard as they could against the Feral Dragon, but their weapons did little damage to its thick scales. Geoffrey retreated a short distance to give himself time to draw a new lance to replace the one he had broken against the dragon's wing, his blue armour scorched and blackened from fire.

Stefan noticed that one of the knights, Astrid, had not realised that the dragon was aiming a blast of flame at her. The Swordmaster moved through the crowd faster than anyone would have believed possible and, in one clean motion, stabbed the dragon in its left eye.

An ear-splitting scream rent the air. Astrid looked around and finally realised what had happened. The dragon threw back its enormous head and shot a jet of flame into the sky with a roar of pain. The Royal Knights urged their horses backwards, but Stefan remained where he was, standing not five feet away from the dragon. _The battle is far from over, _he thought grimly.

Then the dragon lunged at him with incredible speed, opening its jaws wide. Stefan stabbed upwards and embedded his sword in the roof of the dragon's mouth, stopping it from closing its jaws on him.

The monster snarled and tried to dislodge the blade, but without success. Stefan threw his weight against the sword, keeping the dragon's mouth open and preventing it from biting down. A thin stream of smoke escaped its nostrils as it growled in fury, using all its strength to snap its heavy jaws together.

Stefan gritted his teeth and remained where he was.

The dragon used more strength to close its jaws, nearly succeeding this time, but the Swordmaster's blade stopped it again.

Nearly a minute passed.

The dragon's jaws were only inches apart, but Stefan was still using his sword to hold the monster's mouth open and stop it from snapping down on him.

Another minute passed.

* * *

Darkness filled the raven's mind as he awoke.

Black eyes slowly opened, feathers ruffling to shake off the last drops of filthy water from the castle's moat. Claws clenched the wood beneath him for support. Naesala, still in his raven form, stood up and coughed suddenly and violently, letting out a stream of water from his sharp beak. When he had finished, he swayed slightly and gripped the bridge with his talons to keep himself upright, still trying to remember what had happened.

'I thought I was dead,' he said to himself in a casual tone, as though the thought of being dead was of no concern to him. 'Ah well. I suppose I'm not, then.' He shook out his feathers to get the last of the water off. Then he noticed the Royal Knights still battling the black dragon on the other side of the drawbridge. They didn't seem to be having much success.

'It's a Feral Dragon, after all,' Naesala said. 'Not an easy enemy to defeat.'

An idea came to him. It was the sort of cunning idea only a raven could think of, and if he was fast enough, it might actually work.

'Right, Leanne, time to get to work,' he said to himself. With a few flaps of his newly dried wings, he took off a little unsteadily and quickly climbed into the sky.

He narrowed his eyes.

'I think a heron could be useful here. And I'm going to find one.'


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

Haar urged his borrowed Wyvern to land on the drawbridge with a grunt of effort. The blue-green creature was very bad-tempered and did her best to annoy him at every turn. If it wasn't for Haar's great skill as a Wyvern Rider he would have been thrown off her back a long time ago – as it was, he had managed to stay on, just barely, throughout the aerial battle with the black dragon.

The Wyvern snorted angrily as her feet thumped into the bridge. Haar quickly slid off her back and turned away from her, trying to ignore how much he was missing his own loyal, jet-black Wyvern who had died in the dragon's earlier attack. Things would be so much easier now if his faithful steed was still with him, but unfortunately there was nothing he could do except learn to riding a different Wyvern and hope he got used to it quickly.

'Stay there, Willow,' he snapped at the blue-green beast behind him, hearing her growl in response. He couldn't find it in him to be polite to her, not after nearly being bucked off at least four times during their aerial battle against the dragon.

Ignoring the grouchy Wyvern, Haar drew his poleaxe and set off along the bridge alone. He could see the black dragon, but he could not tell what was happening from that far away. Especially with only one working eye. Upon closer inspection, he realised that Stefan was using his sword to hold the dragon's jaws open, preventing it from biting down on him. However, he could not hope to match the monster's enormous strength for much longer. Instinctively, Haar joined the crowd around them and tried to get a better look at what was going on.

The Royal Knights were defeated. Two horses were dead – Astrid's and Kieran's – and the other Knights were either injured or left weaponless. _The dragon overpowered them all, _Haar thought, realising for the first time how dangerous the Feral Dragon was. He turned his attention back to the Stefan.

The Swordmaster's blade was embedded in the roof of the dragon's mouth and was the only thing stopping its jaws from snapping shut. He had managed to keep the dragon's mouth open for several minutes. However, the sword looked as though it was likely to break under the weight of the monster's upper jaw, which was slowly but surely forcing itself downwards until the teeth almost met.

Haar drew out a short axe, the one he usually kept strapped to the side of his saddle when he was flying, and hurled it at the dragon. With a deft flick of its tail, the monster sent the axe flying back towards Haar, who ducked under it.

_There's got to be a way to stop that great flying lizard, _he thought to himself.

Then he heard a horrible grinding noise as Stefan's sword finally cracked under the weight of the dragon's jaw. A triumphant roar rang out as the dragon finally freed itself, and lunged to attack its defenceless prey.

Stefan glanced up and noticed that his sword would not last much longer before it snapped in half. The dragon's glittering, dark-red eyes gleamed. Then, with the ear-splitting noise of breaking metal, the blade snapped in two under the incredible force put behind the dragon's great jaws. Pieces of silver steel flew in all directions. Stefan swiftly threw the useless hilt of the sword away, as the dragon's roar of victory erupted above his head.

_It doesn't look too happy now... _he mused to himself.

Then the dragon's jaws descended on him. But the enormous teeth never met each other.

At the last second, he heard the faint notes of a strange music echoing across the castle. The sound was unmistakable: Heron galdrar. The dragon froze, jaws gaping, but they did not bite down.

Up on the castle roof, a rather exhausted Naesala was watching the scene blow with satisfaction while Leanne, the Heron princess, stood beside him. The mystical power of the Heron's song washed over the land like a rainstorm, deep and magical. The black dragon stopped dead upon hearing the song and, slowly, the gleam of madness left its eyes.

'Well, Leanne,' the Raven drawled, 'looks like my ingenious plan worked after all. I'm a life-saver, aren't I?'

Leanne stopped singing and turned to smile faintly at him. She whispered something in the Old Tongue, and Naesala smiled in return and looked back down at the scene below. The dragon was no longer Feral, but an ordinary Black Dragon Laguz. The power of the Heron galdrar had restored its mind to normal.

'Thank you very much, Leanne.'

* * *

Everyone watched in silent amazement as the black dragon was returned to its normal condition by the Heron's magic. Oscar glanced around and his eyes met Stefan's. _Remind me to thank Naesala again, _he seemed to say wordlessly.

The Swordmaster smirked slightly in response and turned his attention back to the motionless dragon. Now it was no longer Feral, he was finally able to recognise it. The truth of the dragon's identity seemed to surprise the Royal Knights, who were watching from a few feet away.

The dragon groaned and opened his eyes, before shaking his head vigorously to clear it. He gazed down at Elincia's soldiers, all standing with their weapons still drawn. His great glowing eyes were obscured for a moment as he blinked, trying to work out what had just happened.

Oscar got off his horse and sidled up to Stefan. He leaned towards the Swordmaster's ear and muttered, 'Does that dragon seem familiar to you?'

They both turned her eyes towards the enormous black dragon.

'I believe so,' replied Stefan, his smirk widening slightly. 'Welcome back, Kurthnaga.'

'By the way,' added Oscar, 'you promised to train me tomorrow morning. I haven't forgotten, you know.'

Stefan turned around to look at the Paladin directly. 'Neither have I.' With that, the two warriors reached out and shook hands. 'Come to the training hall in the castle at sunrise tomorrow. I will be waiting there.'

'Thanks, Stefan!' grinned Oscar.

Behind them, they heard three loud thuds as Naesala, Leanne and Haar landed on the bridge, no doubt coming to offer their own congratulations. Stefan gave an exaggerated sigh, but Oscar only smiled wider and wandered over to greet his three comrades.


	9. Chapter 9

**Sorry for the long delay, I couldn't upload any chapters for a while.**

* * *

Chapter Nine

Elincia's white Pegasus, Sol, flew gracefully over the castle to land on the battered drawbridge with a clatter of hooves. As she leapt down from the saddle, she pulled out her royal Crimean sword from the sheath on her back in preparation for battle. However, upon seeing the shape of the enormous black dragon, she quickly realised that the enemy in question was no longer a threat. Something had caused the Feral dragon to return to its normal state. Sheathing her sword, she ran over to join her soldiers with her Pegasus trotting swiftly behind her, moving as quickly as possible. The Royal Knights threw anxious glances in her direction, and General Geoffrey dismounted from his sleek warhorse to greet her.

'Queen Elincia,' he said, sounding a little breathless from the earlier battle against the dragon. 'It appears we have a new problem on our hands to deal with, and we may need your help with it.'

The green-haired Queen inclined her head towards him gratefully and replied, 'Of course. Can you tell me exactly what is going on here? I came as fast as I could, with the intention of helping in the battle, but it looks to me like there aren't any enemies left to fight.' Her eyes moved over the torn-up drawbridge, the dark shape of Naesala sitting on the rooftop, and the battle-worn figures of the Royal Knights gathered around the confused-looking Black Dragon. 'I must confess, the dragon seems familiar. Was he one of the Laguz who fought alongide us in the last War?'

'He is,' Geoffrey answered grimly. 'He's Kurthnaga, the prince of the dragons of Goldoa. How he ever came to being Feral, I have no idea. But I think we should find out, in case this happens to any other Laguz we know. Something very strange is going on, as you've probably noticed by now.' He glanced back at the enormous, slightly disorientated-looking dragon, and shook his head tiredly. 'You ought to speak to him and ask him how he ended up in that state.'

'Perhaps,' said Elincia, 'but I want to be certain he is unharmed from the battle first. He clearly has no memory of being a Feral One and he did not attack us intentionally. Invite him inside the castle and make sure he is comfortable; I will hold a meeting shortly to discuss everything.' She was also curious about how Kurthnaga came to be a Feral One, but right now, all she cared about was making sure he was not injured. He had been a loyal comrade in the past and she wanted him to know that they were still allies, even though the Dragon Laguz had been apart from the rest of Tellius for several months since the last war.

Geoffrey bowed slightly, not questioning Elincia any further, for which she was grateful. 'My Queen, if I may ask, what will you be doing before you come to the meeting you mentioned?'

Her only answer was, 'Congratulating my warriors on their bravery and thanking Naesala and Leanne for their part in the battle.'

As Geoffrey turned away to rejoin the crowd gathered around the enormous dragon, Elincia spared a moment to glance up at the castle roof above her. The two Bird Laguz were no longer visible, although she wouldn't have been able to see Naesala anyway, due to the way his black feathers blended in with the dark stone of the roof. However, the pure white plumage of Leanne's wings should have been visible anywhere. _I shall have to remember to thank them later, _Elincia thought. _Right now, I have other things to deal with. We have a nasty problem on our hands this time._

Just then, a dark shadow fell over her, covering half of the drawbridge. A dull thud sounded as a blue-green Wyvern landed heavily beside her, shaking the bridge with its large feet. She noticed that Haar looked more grim than usual as he slid off the creature's back, grabbing its reins to stop it from flying away without him.

'Where's Naesala?' he asked bluntly. 'I saw him fly in front of me when the dragon attacked. Is he...?'

'Oh, no!' Elincia said hastily. 'He's fine. Well, actually, I thought he was dead until he suddenly reappeared with Leanne earlier. I think he brought her here because her Heron galdrar could restore the dragon to its normal state.' She smiled briefly. 'It worked. The dragon is no longer Feral, and we recognised him as our old comrade Kurthnaga.'

'Kurth, eh?' Haar stifled a yawn, apparently put at ease by the knowledge that Naesala had not sacrificed his life for him. He did not, however, lean against the Wyvern, which Elincia knew he would have done if the creature was his own faithful steed. Instead he remained upright and standing a couple of feet away from the Wyvern. She couldn't help but feel a little guilty, although she knew she could not have prevented the death of Haar's old Wyvern, when she hadn't even known about the dragon before the battle today. It was not her fault, but she always hated it when one of her soldiers lost something important to them. She had felt like that when Kieran's horse had died during a battle in the Mad King's War four years ago.

Returning to the present, she nodded. 'Yes. Kurthnaga was somehow turned Feral. At the moment I don't know how, but I am holding a meeting with Kurth and the Royal Knights to find out more about this. You may also come if you wish, since as you played an important role in the battle today.' She paused before adding, 'And I'm truly sorry for the loss of your Wyvern. I know he was very loyal to you. Are you planning to buy a new steed in the market later, or...?'

Haar looked at her. She noticed that he turned his head slightly to the side so he could see her out of his one good eye. 'I don't know yet,' he admitted. 'Wyverns are expensive, much more than horses or Pegasi – though I'm not worried about the cost. I'll think about it later.' And he refused to say any more on the subject, instead opting to take the borrowed Wyvern's reins and lead it back to the stables outside the castle.

Elincia watched him leave with a hint of sadness, wondering whether he was going to get a new Wyvern, or whether he would decide to give up being a Dragonlord because of the death of his old steed. She suddenly felt a hard nudge on her shoulder and reached up to feel the silky muzzle of Sol, her Pegasus, gently pushing against her from behind. The winged horse gazed at her with intelligent, peaceful eyes. She knew that if she ever lost her Pegasus, as Haar had lost his Wyvern, she would never be able to find a replacement for him.

However, she decided not to question the loyal Dragonlord. Everything would be explained in time and then, hopefully, she would find out what Haar was planning to do after the loss of his Wyvern.

* * *

The meeting took place in the Great Hall of the castle a few minutes later.

Stefan took his place at the long table, choosing to sit next to Oscar as usual. The green-haired knight didn't look as cheerful as he normally did; his brow was furrowed with concentration. On Oscar's other side was Kieran, followed by Astrid and a very tense-looking Geoffrey. Elincia sat at the far end of the table, watching everyone else, and currently not speaking. The dragon Kurthnaga, now in his human form, stood behind Elincia's chair, hands gripping its back.

In a dark corner of the room stood Haar, leaning against the wall and looking like he was asleep. If Stefan hadn't seen his narrowed eye flicking between each other person in the room, he would have thought Haar really had dozed off. At the moment, it felt like the air was charged with electricity as everyone waited anxiously to hear what Elincia was going to say.

Oscar leaned sideways in his chair and muttered, 'Do you have any idea what caused Kurth to become Feral?' The whisper was barely audible, but Stefan, with his sharper-than-normal hearing, was able to hear it as clearly as if the knight was speaking at normal volume.

'The Queen will explain it all, I suppose,' he replied in an equally low voice, before turning his gaze back to the tabletop. As usual, he managed to fascinate himself with the swirling patterns in the wood, so that everyone left him alone. Oscar was the only one who tried to engage him in conversation, but Stefan had recently discovered that he wasn't really averse to speaking with the knight.

The Swordmaster glanced back up when Elincia tapped a finger on the table, trying to get everyone's attention. As she stood up, Kurth jumped backwards from her chair as though it had burned him and remained a few feet away from where he had been standing before. He looked unusually nervous, and Stefan could not blame him. It must be unnerving to suddenly wake up and realise that you had been mindlessly attacking your friends and allies. Nobody paid the skittish Dragon Laguz any attention, instead fixing their gazes on Elincia as though hoping she was going to relieve some of the anxiety still hanging in the air like a cloud.

'My friends,' the Queen began. 'As many of you know, we are facing a grave situation. Today, we were attacked by a Feral Black Dragon. King Naesala, with the help of Princess Leanne, managed to revert the dragon to its natural state, and we found out that it was Kurthnaga, the prince of Goldoa. Now we must find out what caused him to turn Feral, so we can stop this from happening to other Laguz.' She looked around the table to see what kind of reaction her words were getting; so far, everyone was staring at her expressionlessly, waiting for her to say more. She elaborated.

'I have a few theories on what might have caused this, but I will allow Kurthnaga to explain. I believe he knows what happened much better than I do.' She turned in her chair, looking expectantly at the Dragon Laguz. No-one spoke. Then Kurthnaga straightened up and, casting a quick, nervous glance around the hall, began to talk.

'The last thing I remember – before I woke up outside your castle – is stopping to drink at a river in Goldoa. I was in my dragon form because I had been flying a long distance, and I needed to stop and rest. I remember that the water tasted strange, but I paid it no attention... I suppose the river was polluted. It's the only explanation that fits.' He cleared his throat slightly and, when he didn't say anything else, the people around the table turned their attention back to Queen Elincia.

'I see,' she said thoughtfully. 'I believe I know what happened now.' She abruptly got to her feet and started pacing up and down. 'Do any of you remember Izuka, the one who invented the drug that drives Laguz to madness and keeps them in their animal forms?' A murmur of assent swept the hall. 'Even though Izuka has been dead for over a year, I think there might still be people who know about his creations. Although the last traces of the Feral drug were destroyed after his death, that doesn't mean it can't be re-created.'

'Someone made a new Feral drug and poisoned Goldoa's rivers with it?' said Kurthnaga sharply, showing anger for the first time during the meeting. 'That means the other dragons who drink the water will also turn Feral!'

Stefan returned his gaze to the tabletop, already losing interest in the conversation. He didn't _hate _the Laguz, but that didn't mean he liked them either. The Laguz treated people like him with such contempt that feeling any sympathy for the dragons' plight was near impossible for him. He ran a finger along the table, trying to ignore the buzz of conversation around him, although he quietness of the room made it difficult to block out the sound of Elincia and the Knights' discussion completely.

'We will have to travel to Goldoa...' Elincia said, sighing. 'It's a long way to go, even on horseback, but we cannot ignore it when something like this is happening to the dragons. They are our friends and, more importantly, our allies. In return for the help they gave us during the War, I will do everything in my power to save them from whatever evil, twisted enemy is causing them to become Feral. I will fly out on my Pegasus tomorrow at dawn. If you wish to accompany me, then you are welcome to, but I will not force any of you to come on such a long and possibly dangerous expedition.' Finished with her speech, she looked up expectantly as if waiting for a response from the anxious group of knights.

'Queen Elincia,' began Kurth in a slightly hesitant tone, 'there's no need for you to do this. Riding away from your homeland to try and save the dragons, it's not necessary. Even without your help, we would eventually find a way to deal with this problem ourselves. Your country needs you; you shouldn't put yourself at risk just because my race is in danger.'

A tense silence followed the Dragon Prince's words as he lowered his head and stopped speaking, apparently unnerved by the lack of reaction from the Queen and her Knights. _Crimean soldiers are unusually noble, _Stefan thought to himself, idly tracing the patterns on the tabletop with one finger while barely listening to the conversation. _And Goldoa's dragons are proud. They will not allow others to help them easily. Elincia is wasting her time, trying to persuade Kurthnaga to accept her help. _However, he raised his head when he heard Elincia's voice ring across the room, strong and clear in the silence.

'I'm sorry, Prince Kurthnaga, but I've already made my decision. I will fly out to Goldoa tomorrow morning. Remember, this isn't the dragons' problem alone. Whoever recreated the Feral drug could be dangerous to us as well. I must keep my homeland safe, so I will find a way to stop this threat, no matter how perilous the path may be.' She tapped a fingernail on the edge of the table in a dismissive gesture.

A moment later, just when Stefan thought no-one else was going to speak up, Geoffrey got to his feet and placed both hands flat on the tabletop. 'I cannot sit here and watch as an entire race of Laguz is destroyed by the remnants of Izuka's twisted experiments. My Queen, I will march out tomorrow and accompany you.'

Silence fell. Elincia sat back down and sighed deeply, closing her eyes for a moment as though exhausted by the long day's events.

'Meeting dismissed.'

* * *

**Please leave a review!**


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

The next morning came bright, clear and cold. During the night, frost had settled thickly on the grass around Crimea Castle, forming a pattern of white on the frozen ground. Where the moat had been, there was now just a layer of ice about two inches thick, which reflected the rising sun in the east upon its surface. Before the sun had fully risen, Oscar emerged from the castle to break the ice on the moat, allowing the birds to drink from the water as they usually did in the morning. Using the blunt end of his lance, he smashed the frozen surface, scattering ice chips across the broken drawbridge.

_I hope it doesn't snow while we're travelling to Goldoa, _he mused to himself. _That would slow us down a lot, even if Elincia and Haar can fly above the ground, the rest of us would have to ride straight through it. _He raised his lance over his head and brought it down on the ice, shattering it into hundreds of tiny pieces like broken glass. He surveyed his work with satisfaction before sheathing his lance and turning away, only to hear footsteps coming up behind him.

'A little early to be outside, isn't it?'

Oscar relaxed. Those footsteps had been far too soft to be a dragon, but for a second he had been afraid he was about to be attacked from behind by another Feral One. He supposed he was being overcautious. 'I could say the same thing to you, but I know you're always out here in the morning.'

'Yes, but it's unusual for anyone else to be out here at this time,' Stefan replied lightly. Oscar, still facing away from him, heard the metallic scrape of a sword being unsheathed. 'I believe you wanted to practise your skills this morning, but since as we're both here, why don't we train outside for a change? It's nicer out here than inside the castle.'

Oscar smiled to himself and drew his lance, still not looking around at the Swordmaster. 'I'll be happy to,' he replied, running a finger along the shaft of the weapon and preparing himself for an attack. Although he had watched Stefan fighting before, he was confident in his ability to defend himself against the Swordmaster without much effort.

He heard a swipe through the air as a blade swept towards him, and he whipped around as fast as he could and blocked it with his lance. The impact drove him backwards. Oscar gasped at the strength put behind the easy strike, and he fought back just as viciously. His lance locked with the hilt of Stefan's sword and was nearly pulled out of his grasp.

'Where did you find that?' he asked, referring to the gleaming weapon in Stefan's hand. 'I thought you didn't own any swords except the Vague Katti, and that got broken yesterday.'

An instant later he was thrown backwards, landing hard on the frozen ground with a colossal crash. The impact rattled every armour plate he was wearing and knocked the lance out of his hand. With a grunt, he pushed himself onto his feet and paused for a moment to regain his breath. Something was telling him to be more observant in future, especially when he was fighting a certain Swordmaster who seemed to be able to attack without anyone noticing what he was doing until the last second.

'No, Elincia gave it to me personally,' Stefan said, in response to Oscar's question.

'You're too fast,' Oscar groaned once he had got his breath back. 'Elincia should make you the leader of the Royal Knights.'

'And what would she do with Geoffrey? I don't think he would appreciate someone else taking his place as the Queen's protector,' Stefan replied with a faint smirk, sheathing his new sword. Oscar paused for a moment, noting his opponent's lack of a weapon, and decided to make his move.

Leaping forwards to attack a second time, he was astonished by the speed Stefan re-drew his sword. His lance rebounded off the hilt and he stumbled back before regaining his balance in time to block the slash aimed at him. He was used to fighting on horseback, although he could still defend himself on foot if he had to – though it was a lot harder than it looked. Without the advantage of his horse, he was quickly overpowered and knocked into the dust yet again, his lance rolling away due to the massive blow which had ripped it from his grasp. Stefan, however, did not seem concerned by Oscar's lack of skill.

'Try again tomorrow at dawn,' he suggested, sheathing his silver sword. 'You'll learn eventually.'

Oscar climbed to his feet, putting his lance away as he stood up. His armour was dented and would need cleaning before they set off on their journey to Goldoa later that day, but he was still pleased with the morning's work. It had been a long time since he'd had such a difficult opponent to face and he needed the practise. 'Thanks,' he said sincerely, offering his hand to shake. Stefan accepted it wordlessly.

As they released each other's hands, a loud thud shook the ground nearby. Both fighters swung around, expecting too see another Feral Dragon standing before them with gleaming teeth and smoke rolling from its nostrils – but it was just Haar and his borrowed, bad-tempered, blue-green Wyvern. Neither of them, Oscar noticed, looked particularly happy, but the Wyvern never looked happy in his opinion.

'Hello, Haar,' he greeted the Dragonlord respectfully with a slight nod of his head. 'What are you doing out this early? _It's not like you to wake up before noon at least, _he added silently.

'I couldn't sleep much last night,' Haar confessed. 'I know that sounds weird, but I suppose I was being kept awake by the racket that stupid great lizard was making.' He pointed an accusing, black-armoured finger at the Wyvern, which narrowed its eyes at him as though expecting some kind of sneak attack. The annoyance and hatred on both faces was so obvious, Oscar began to wonder whether Haar should consider finding himself a new Wyvern. However, when he suggested this, the Dragonlord shook his head.

'Wyverns don't always like people. That was what was special about old Lore, he was friendly, and besides...' He broke off with a very pronounced yawn. Afterwards, he seemed to forget what he had been about to say. Meanwhile, the green-haired Royal Knight was deep in thought over the name he had just heard.

_Lore?_ _Is – was – that the name of Haar's old black Wyvern? I didn't even know it had a name. _Casually he asked, 'So are you going to keep that borrowed Wyvern? If you don't want to get a new one, you'll have to give up your job as a Dragonlord.'

Haar yawned unconcernedly. 'There are other things I could do. Right now, all I need is a good nap. And with this dumb reptile keeping me awake -' he shot a glare at the Wyvern, who glared right back at him '- I'm not likely to get to sleep very easily. Oscar, do me a favour and take this awful creature back to Elincia's stables, will you? I could use a break from her for a while.'

Oscar nodded, noticing with concern that Haar seemed even more exhausted than usual. Gingerly, he walked forwards and took the Wyvern's rein from her rider. Almost instantly, the beast started to tug sharply on the rein with enough strength to pull the knight off his feet, if Stefan hadn't come over and quickly taken the rein himself. 'Is she... always... this bad?' Oscar panted, watching as the Wyvern growled restlessly; Stefan didn't move an inch despite the strength of the beast's struggles. 'How in the name of Ashera do you manage to ride her?'

'With difficulty,' said Haar tiredly. 'She isn't anything like old Lore; she constantly tries to take control, to show you that she's the boss... it's hard to stop her when she's playing up.' He glanced one last time at the angry Wyvern, who had quieted down when she realised that she could not escape Stefan's hold on her rein. 'Take her to the stables round the back of the castle. I'm going for a long sleep.' He wandered back in the direction of the castle, more slowly than normal, and disappeared inside.

'Here, you should be able to handle her now,' said Stefan, offering the Wyvern's rein. She had ceased pulling and subsided into a sulky silence.

Oscar tentatively took hold of the Wyvern. True to Stefan's word, she didn't struggle against him. 'I'll lead her to the stables,' he said, dragging the Wyvern away towards the castle.

Stefan stayed where he was for a moment longer, watching the knight and the unruly Wyvern's slow progress. As the sun rose higher and the rest of the castle's inhabitants began to wake up, he pensively glanced in the direction of the Grann Desert. Of course, it was not visible at such a distance, but he knew by instinct where it lay. _I wonder if I will ever set foot on those sands again, _he thought, pausing for a moment to brush the long strands of hair out of his eyes. _I will decide on that later. For now, there are more important matters to attend to._

Following Haar's footsteps over the drawbridge, he entered the great Crimea Castle. It soon became painfully obvious that Elincia – ignoring the many dangers along the way – was intending to lead her army to Goldoa that very morning as she had planned. Even if it didn't snow, the journey would still be a long and perilous one...


	11. Chapter 11

**This chapter takes place in the village from PoR Chapter 11 (I don't know if the village actually has a name).**

**It's also from Lethe's POV and introduces two new characters to the story.**

* * *

Chapter Eleven

The Red Dragon seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. Swooping out of the sky on crimson wings, its bulk overshadowed the entire village. Its yellow eyes were filled with a savage madness and hunger, like a wild animal that had been deprived of food for weeks on end. Powerful muscles rippled underneath its gleaming hide as it gave a howl of rage, spotting the village beneath it. Its weight left a crater in the earth nearly two feet deep and shook every building within a half-mile of the dragon's body. Any villagers who had still been outside swiftly ran indoors in fear of their lives, slamming doors shut and locking them securely with chains.

As if that would protect them.

The Red Dragon roared and, raising one foot, crushed the nearest house as easily as if it were a pile of matchsticks. The splintered remains lay forlornly as the dragon lifted its enormous paw from the ground and glared with satisfaction at the wreckage. Its teeth bared in an evil grin. Then it moved on to attack the other buildings, with the intention of leaving the whole village in ruins.

From behind a tree, a hundred feet from the wrecked house, a serious-looking man with long silver hair watched the dragon's movements warily. His stance was that of a highly skilled Swordmaster. The iron blade in his hand was held loosely, but was ready to leap into action when needed. As the gigantic shape of the Red Dragon stomped away, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake, he turned reluctantly to his companion who stood right beside him.

Lethe's tail twitched with annoyance. Seeing the Feral Ones again was almost too much for her, but she refused to run away like a coward. Instead, she fixed her sharp eyes on the dragon as it crawled through the narrow streets, trying not to show her revulsion at the sight of the mad, twisted creature as it ruthlessly incinerated another building. She raised one ear in silent acknowledgement when she noticed her companion's eyes on her. 'Yes?'

Zihark lifted his sword slightly to point in the dragon's direction, though the beast was barely visible now. 'I was going to say, 'did you see that?' but somehow I don't think I need to,' he said humourlessly. 'I don't understand why they're coming back again. That's the third dragon I've seen this week.'

Beside him, Lethe shuddered. The madness in the poor dragon's eyes seemed to be fixed in her memory. _What kind of monster could do something like this? That filth, Izuka, was killed years ago. Has somebody decided it would be a good idea to try what he tried before? _She let out a short hiss of frustration, startling Zihark momentarily. _I don't suppose we can stand here and do nothing, but... can I actually bring myself to kill it, one of my own kind? Well, OK, I'm not a dragon, but I'm still a Laguz. And if we don't do something fast the whole village is going to end up completely destroyed..._

The silver-haired Swordmaster seemed to be following her train of thought as he asked her, 'Lethe, have you ever fought a dragon before?'

_Of course I've fought dragons before! _'Yes, but I've never had to... kill one. Not even the Feral Dragons we fought in the Mad King's War. And this one is probably just as powerful as they were.'

Zihark nodded thoughtfully. 'Yes, I remember those dragons. It took at least four of us to defeat just a single one of them...' He paused for a minute or two. Somewhere at the other end of the village, there was a loud roar followed by a crashing noise as the dragon attacked some other building. He looked over his shoulder at Lethe, who was snarling silently, her ears pressed back against her head. 'So, do you feel up to a battle?'

Lethe stared at him in surprise. Nearby, the dragon roared again, its bellows becoming louder and louder as it approached their hiding place. She nodded curtly and began to shift into her cat form. With a hiss she dropped onto all fours, just as the dragon's muzzle smashed hard into the tree and thrust towards them.

It was impossibly large. The crimson scales were as thick and gleaming as polished chain-mail. Massive, shining yellow eyes glared down with a mixture of excitement and fury, the pupils narrowed to slits in the sunlight. The dragon's wings and body were covered in scars, some shaped like claw or tooth marks, others looking more like old fire damage. Before Lethe or Zihark could do anything, the dragon blasted them with flames.

Lethe scampered backwards as a wave of heat rolled over, but the splintered tree had shielded her from the worst of the blast. The dragon was slow-moving; that was good for her. She ran forwards, diving under the clawed forelegs as they lifted from the earth, the dragon stretching out is neck in an attempt to locate its prey.

Springing up onto the membrane of the dragon's wing, she sunk her claws deep into its back before pulling away. As she dashed to safety, she spotted Zihark standing under the shelter of a collapsed building, beckoning frantically to her through the smoke.

'Are you all right?' he asked in concern as Lethe dived out of harm's way and joined him in the shadow of the ruins. With a flick of her tail, she told him that she was unharmed, being unable to speak in her current form. Immediately, the Feral Dragon gave another roar. Lethe glanced up at her companion in panic. The dragon had discovered where they were hiding and was coming to find them. Blood was trickling from the claw wounds in its back and it looked infuriated as it stamped noisily towards their hiding place. If they didn't move soon, they would both be torn to pieces.

Zihark raised his sword, and she recognised his intention instantly. 'Wait there, I'll return in a minute,' he said distractedly as the Red Dragon came closer to the ruined building. Before Lethe could make a move to stop him, he had taken off, heading quickly around the side of the building in hope of catching the dragon unawares.

With a frustrated hiss, Lethe considered following him in her cat form. She was swift and stealthy enough to avoid being seen. The dragon wouldn't notice her until she attacked... _So why don't I hurry up and go! _she thought, irritated. But before she could make her decision, she heard a feral snarl right behind her. She whirled. It was a White Dragon.

_More of these mad creatures! _With a yowl, Lethe pounced at the dragon, seeing the shock in its eyes as she attacked, quickly and viciously. The White Dragon was nowhere near as strong as the Red one, and it took her only a few seconds to defeat it. As the creature's body collapsed to the ground and faded away in a silver light, she heard a voice calling her from nearby. At the same time she heard a loud, savage roar from the remaining dragon.

_More trouble... _A little breathless now, Lethe sprung away and ran towards the middle of the village. The Red Dragon was still fighting, but as Zihark performed his five-strike Astra move on it, it crashed to the ground and slowly faded into nothingness, defeated. Zihark wiped his blade on the grass and quickly looked around for his companion.

Lethe reverted to her human form as she ran over to him. Her ears pressed back at the smell of blood that still clung to his sword. 'Any more of these awful creatures?' she asked.

'No, that was the last of them,' replied Zihark, though he did glance upwards as though expecting another dragon to appear out of the sky and dive down on them. 'I think we should check around the village and make sure everyone's all right. The dragon destroyed a lot of buildings, and some of them might have still been inhabited.'

Lethe jerked her head in a nod. _I don't care much about the humans – I mean, the beorc, _she thought wearily. _But we're the only ones who can protect the village now, so it's up to us to make sure everyone is all right._

'Let's go then,' she said reluctantly.

Zihark turned towards the nearest ruined house. Lethe fought back a sigh of frustration as she fell into step beside him. She had only recently noticed that she didn't hate him, as she hated most humans. _After all, he was one of the first beorc I met who didn't treat all Laguz like we're filthy animals or something. It was nice to meet somebody who wasn't like that... _Then she shook her head violently and, with a hint of uneasiness, followed the Swordmaster's back as he disappeared into the village.

An hour later, Lethe emerged from the village in her cat form, exhausted from the events that had taken place. None of the villagers had been hurt in the dragon's attack, but the damage to the town was huge. They had managed to salvage a few houses, but most were beyond help and the villagers did not have the tools or knowledge necessary to repair them. However, all that mattered was that nobody had died in the attack, thanks to her and Zihark.

* * *

The orange Cat Laguz yawned enormously as she circled a patch of grass underneath a tree. Pausing only to sharpen her claws on a fallen log, she swiftly settled down, curling her long tail around her paws. Without bothering to change back to her human form, she quickly fell into a deep sleep as the sky gradually turned darker.

That night, she had a dream. She couldn't remember ever having such a vivid dream in her life.

_The world was all fire and nothing else. Smoke rose in thick, choking clouds into the sky – jet-black smoke that swirled and moved as if it had a mind of its own. The village was burned to the ground and the sea was dark with ash and soot. If the sun still existed, it was not visible, hidden behind walls of smoke that filled the sky. Lethe crouched behind a ruined house, in her cat form, her ears pressed flat against her head. Through the terrible smell of burning that surrounded her on all sides, she smelled something else, something familiar. _Steel, _she thought. _The scent of weapons. The scent of beorc.

_Fire was everywhere. Orange and gold, red and blue, rising into the sky like the head of a monstrous creature. It swept across the ground, consuming everything in its path. Lethe narrowed her eyes and glimpsed a wall of flames moving swiftly towards her. Behind the flames, there was nothing but ash, covering the ground like black dust and filling the air with the smell of burning._

_The fire howled, louder than before. Lethe crept backwards, watching in frozen horror as the wall of flames approached, leaving nothing but blackness behind it. The grass beneath her had grown hot, scorching the pads of her paws and leaving the bitter scent of burning in the air. _What is this place?! _she yowled, leaping into the safety of a nearby tree. _And why can I smell steel?

_The fire pursued her up the tree. The world became a shadow, her surroundings blurring, melting into each other. Lethe raised her head to the dark sky and howled as the tree beneath her slowly collapsed into the waiting fire. Everything dissolved into darkness, and the dream ended abruptly as Lethe jerked awake. But in the instant before she woke up, she saw him; standing before the flames, watching her from an incalculable distance away, fire reflected on the blade of his sword._

Zihark... _she cried as she fell from the tree. She was still in the middle of saying the word when she woke up._


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

Elincia gathered her troops outside the castle early that morning. She had decided to only take a small number of soldiers with her, to make their journey to Goldoa quicker and easier. Taking the entire army would mean they would need more food and water supplies, which they would have difficulty dragging across the countryside. The number of available horses was very limited; all the Royal Knights' horses could carry some supplies with them, and so could Elincia's Pegasus and Haar's borrowed wyvern. However, keeping the expedition as short as possible was of vital importance, otherwise their already limited supplies would run low. And it wasn't just food or water they needed to take with them; they also needed armour and weaponry, healing potions to use in battles, and blankets to sleep on when they stopped to rest for the night.

At first, Elincia had suggested bringing a few tents with them so they had something warm and dry to sleep in. However, she quickly realised that they could not carry the tents without slowing their progress down tremendously. Thus, she had agreed to only bring what was absolutely necessary for the journey, and nothing else.

Preparations took much longer than anticipated. After two hours of confusion, packing, unpacking and repacking the supplies, deciding who was to go on the journey, and at least three arguments, they were finally ready to get going. Elincia saddled her Pegasus and led him out onto the lush grass at the front of the castle, where the rest of her chosen soldiers were waiting. Geoffrey was already mounted on the back of his white warhorse, and Haar was struggling to hold onto his wyvern. Oscar was waiting beside his own horse, stroking her neck comfortingly and whispering something inaudible. Kurthnaga stood a little apart from the others, ready to shift into his dragon form. In the last minute before they departed, he beckoned Elincia over to him, looking urgent.

'I should probably warn you,' he said, 'there are a lot of Feral Dragons lying in wait for us. I can sense them. There are so many... it seems like nearly all of Goldoa's population has been turned Feral.'

Elincia's heart sank, but she tried not to look discouraged. 'After we clean the pollution from the water, we can find a Heron to restore the dragons to their normal state.'

Kurth nodded and gestured for Elincia to step backwards. As soon as she did, he shifted into his Black Dragon form. Half as high as the castle itself, he was an impressive sight as he flared his crimson wings in preparation for flight. It was as though his transformation was a signal to the others; Elincia watched as the Royal Knights climbed onto their horses and Haar mounted his snarling wyvern with only slight difficulty. She saw their expectant expressions and realised they were waiting for her to lead them onwards.

In one swift moment, Elincia gathered up the reins of her white Pegasus and swung one leg over his back. Gripping the reins in one hand and drawing her royal Crimean sword with the other, she took to the skies in a sudden explosion of feathers. Behind her, she heard swift yet heavy wingbeats as Kurthnaga followed no more than twenty feet behind her. She calmed her Pegasus as the enormous Black Dragon fell into a smooth glide alongside them. Below, on the ground, she could see the rest of the soldiers moving forwards at a swift pace.

Geoffrey and Oscar were riding side-by-side on their warhorses, while Stefan was sharing Haar's wyvern, due to not having his own steed; Elincia got the feeling that the wyvern disliked the idea of flying at full speed with two passengers. She galloped along the ground for a few dozen paces before Haar finally managed to coax her into the air. Then she took off abruptly, snapping and snarling and twisting her neck around to try and bite him. It took all of the Dragonlord's skill to control her, and after a few minutes she calmed down slightly and settled into long-distance flying, though her distaste in the task was evident.

Elincia smiled slightly at the commotion and turned her gaze back to the front. Kurthnaga was ahead of her now. She watched the Black Dragon gliding past her on massive wings, sleek muscles working under his dark scales. His immense concentrated _power_ astonished her, and she wondered what they would do if they were ever confronted by another Feral Black Dragon when they reached Goldoa. If what Kurth said was true, they were likely to be attacked by a large number of dragons before they even reached the island where they lived. Elincia's greatest fear was the Dragon King, Dheginsea. What if _he _had also drunk the water that was polluted with the Feral drug? Would they be forced to defend themselves against him? And was it possible for them to defeat a creature as large and powerful as the king of the dragon tribe?

_So many problems, _she thought, a_nd not enough solutions. Was this journey a mistake? Should I have brought more soldiers with me? Kurth doesn't seem worried, but he has less to fear than we do. A Feral Black Dragon could incinerate us all without even using up all the breath in its lungs. Perhaps this expedition will lead us all to our doom... but even so, we must try and save the dragons._

Two hours later, they had reached the border of Crimea. Judging by the sun's position, it was somewhere in the middle of the afternoon. Elincia and Kurthnaga had gained height during the journey, while Haar's wyvern had remained almost at ground level. Oscar and Geoffrey were still riding ahead on their horses, leaving a long trail of hoof-prints across the dry earth and kicking up clouds of dust. Noticing the distance between her and the others, Elincia steered her Pegasus downwards until she was flying at the same height as Haar's wyvern. Raising a hand in greeting, she shouted over to him. 'Do you think we should stop for a break? We've been travelling without rest for over two hours now.' Actually, she felt like she could keep flying for several more hours without stopping, but she had to put her soldiers before herself and ask anyway.

Haar turned his head to the side so he could see her. She saw him give an enormous yawn. 'I don't mind,' he replied. 'But Oscar and Geoffrey's horses will need a break soon. And I wouldn't mind getting off this creature's back for a while.' He pointed at something, ahead of them and slightly to the left. 'There's a small pine forest over that way. I've stopped there sometimes while delivering cargo. It's sheltered and there aren't any dangerous predators in that area, like wolves.'

Elincia thanked him for the suggestion and swiftly flew to the head of the group, where she could lead them more easily. Once they arrived at the edge of the forest, nearly another whole hour had passed. Because it was the middle of winter, the days were much shorter than usual. Darkness was already creeping in, despite it only being the middle of the afternoon, and a deep, bitter cold fell sharply on the air. As everyone moved closer to their steeds for warmth, Elincia decided that they should stay by the forest until tomorrow morning. 'We've already travelled a fair distance,' she pointed out when a few people looked discontented with her suggestion. 'If we get up at dawn tomorrow, we'll reach the ocean by nightfall. From there, we can hire a boat or a ship to travel across the sea to Goldoa.'

Nobody spoke. Elincia, finding herself unexpectedly tired out from the day's flight, spread out a large blanket on the damp grass and sat down with her head resting against Sol's foreleg.

Gradually, the sun set and darkness enveloped the land.

* * *

Fireflies illuminated the makeshift campsite with a soft, glowing light. The shadows cast by the horses, Pegasus and wyvern had grown very long and dark as night set in. Icicles hung from the branches of the evergreen pine trees above their heads, and a flickering campfire provided dull warmth, creating a small circle of light around itself. As Elincia's soldiers moved closer to the fire to keep out the bitter cold and the grass slowly hardened with frost, the atmosphere changed. The group gave each other uneasy glances across the circle of light. Even the sound of Haar snoring every few moments was enough to startle them. The air seemed to turn thicker and colder, the shadows longer and darker than before. The icicles were like stalactites hanging from the ceiling of a pitch-dark cave.

Eventually, Oscar sat up straighter and threw some more dry wood onto the smouldering fire. When he spoke, his voice was low, as though trying not to alert unseen enemies, and everyone jumped at the unexpected sound. 'I know some good stories that can be told around a campfire. Does anyone want to hear one?'

There was an uneasy silence. Oscar moved a few inches closer to the fire and rubbed his hands together. The group seemed to hold their breath as he began speaking slowly.

'I suppose you've all heard of the Greil Mercenaries. I was a member of them not too long ago. You've probably all heard legends about them, how they joined forces with Crimea and defeated Ashnard, the Mad King... saved all the people who were turned to stone, three years later... but I can tell you what it was really like living with them. It wasn't all fame and glory, wealth and power. We weren't always spending our time training or rescuing villages from bandits. We also crossed paths with some of the darkest evils that ever walked the land of Tellius. Some enemies were just too powerful to be defeated by sword and axe and lance alone.

'How many of you have seen the mysterious knight in ebony armour, wielding a massive sword? If any of you have seen him, then you've laid eyes on the Black Knight. He was a great swordsman, and his armour was blessed by the Goddess, so only certain weapons were able to damage it. I've seen him only once. It was when I was climbing the Tower of Guidance with the rest of my comrades. I saw the Black Knight on the other side of a magical barrier that separated him from the rest of us, while Ike, the Hero of Blue Flames, fought bravely against him.

'When I saw him, I instantly knew how dangerous he was. His armour protected him from everything, save the blade of Ike's sword Ragnell. He could have defeated any of us with a single attack. And long ago, before the Mad King's War, he demonstrated the extent of his power to us.'

At this point, Oscar was leaning dangerously close to the fire, speaking in such a low voice that everyone had to strain their ears to hear him. During this short pause in his narrative, the only sound was the crackling of the fire, which was burning lower as it swallowed up the last of the dry wood he had thrown on it earlier.

'I was still a part of the Greil Mercenaries then, and we had been working hard all day, driving bandits and thieves out of villages. That night, just as the sun was setting, I saw Ike and his father, Greil, walk out of the fortress together. I saw them heading into the forest, and I considered saddling my horse and riding after them. They both knew that the forest was very dangerous at night. But I trusted Greil to keep Ike safe no matter what happened. And so I remained in the fortress and waited for them to return, trying to ignore my growing disquiet when they didn't come back for nearly an hour.

'I was starting to believe something terrible had happened, and I prepared to alert the other mercenaries. Somehow, we all sensed that something was wrong. Horribly wrong.'

Oscar leaned over the fire. The circle of light had now grown so dim that his audience could barely see him. His voice had fallen to a whisper and he knew everyone was listening intently.

'I saddled my horse and rode to the edge of the forest with the other mercenaries. The night air seemed colder than normal for that time of year, and there was a strong wind rustling the branches of the trees. As we stopped our horses at the entrance to the forest, the black clouds above us opened up and rain began to pour down at a steady rate, thundering into the ground and splashing across our armour. Our horses slipped in the wet mud as we cautiously moved forwards, certain that something was terribly wrong. The forest was so dark, even darker than usual. And the sound of the rain made it impossible to hear the footsteps coming from between the trees. I remember seeing the shock in the other mercenaries' expressions as a shadowed figure appeared out of the forest.

'A second later, I realised it was not one figure, but two. Then, as they stumbled into the dim light, I recognised Ike. He was drenched from the rain, and behind him he was dragging another person. It was his father.

'There was a great commotion as the mercenaries ran forwards to help Ike and Greil back to the fortress. And... well, all of you know what happened after that. We were all devastated by the death of Ike's father, but it was the way he died that frightened us. The silent threat the Black Knight seemed to hang in the air from that night onwards, and none of us could be truly safe until we knew he had gone for good. And we all secretly hoped that, one day, Ike would become strong enough to stand against the Black Knight and defeat him.'

As Oscar's story reached its conclusion, the last of the fire died out. With a final spluttering crackle and a powerful smell of smoke, the circle of light vanished and the group was plunged into darkness.


End file.
